Students have positive study abroad experiences, recommend all students travel abroad
From homework to vacations, three months of summer usually isn't enough time to fit everything in. So, some Central Michigan University students killed two birds with one stone by studying abroad.
Grand Rapids junior Kelsey Dunneback spent three weeks of her summer studying Fashion Communication at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design in London.
Dunneback said she has always loved traveling and knew studying abroad would be something she wanted to do while at Central Michigan University.
"It made the world seem so much bigger and smaller at the same time, because it made me realize how easy it really is to travel, and that it doesn't have to be some big, unattainable dream," she said.
According to the Office of Study Abroad, more than 45o CMU students study abroad each year. These students can choose from approximately 40 locations spanning six different continents.
Chelsea senior Katy Steklac recently returned from Ghana, where she completed an education service internship. Steklac's internship was through an organization called ProWorld, which offers volunteer, study abroad and internship opportunities in 14 different countries.
“I worked at Mary Queen of Peace Catholic School, which houses students from preschool to 9th grade. The Ghanaian school system is so much different than it is here, so it took a while to adjust, but it was such a great experience," she said.
Steklac said her experience abroad has expanded her knowledge on the world. She says any student thinking of going studying abroad should go for it.
“For anybody who is thinking about studying abroad, my advice would be to bite the bullet and just do it," she said. "It is expensive and it is intimidating to dive headfirst into the unknown, but for me, studying abroad has been one of the best ways to learn more about how the world works and how to communicate better.”
The time to study abroad is now, according to Dunnback. Without the full-time hassle of real world responsibilities, international travel should be something all students look into.
"I would definitely recommend studying abroad anywhere to other students, because there's probably not a better time to do it than when you're this age," she said.
